Marshall, Texas

Marshall, Texas
City
City of Marshall
Location in the state of Texas
Coordinates: 32°33′N 94°22′W / 32.550°N 94.367°W / 32.550; -94.367Coordinates: 32°33′N 94°22′W / 32.550°N 94.367°W / 32.550; -94.367
Country	United States
State	Texas
County	Harrison
Founded	1841
Government
• Type	Council-Manager
• City Commission	Mayor Ed Smith[1]
• City Manager	Lisa Agnor
Area
• Total	29.6 sq mi (76.8 km2)
• Land	29.6 sq mi (76.6 km2)
• Water	0.1 sq mi (0.2 km2)
Elevation	413 ft (126 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	23,523 (city proper)
• Density	809/sq mi (312.5/km2)
	280000 (Longview–Marshall CSA)
Time zone	CST (UTC-6)
• Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP codes	75670-75672
Area code(s)	903
FIPS code	48-46776[2]
GNIS feature ID	1340990[3]
Website	City of Marshall

Marshall is a city in and the county seat of Harrison County in the northeastern corner of the U.S. state of Texas.^[4] Marshall is a major cultural and educational center in East Texas and the tri-state area. At the 2010 census, the population of Marshall was about 23,523.

Marshall was a political and production center of the Confederacy during the Civil War. Later it was a major railroad center of the T&P Railroad from the late 19th century until the mid-20th century. The city's large African American population and the presence of black institutions of higher learning made Marshall a center of the Civil Rights Movement in the American South. The city is known for holding one of the largest light festivals in the United States, the Wonderland of Lights,^[5] and, as the self-proclaimed Pottery Capital of the World, for its sizable pottery industry.

Marshall is also referred to by various nicknames; the Cultural Capital of East Texas,^[6] the Gateway of Texas, the Athens of Texas,^[7] the City of Seven Flags and Center Stage, a branding slogan adopted by the Marshall Convention and Visitors Bureau.

History

Republic of Texas and Civil War (1841–1860)

The city was founded in 1841 as the seat of Harrison County after failed attempts to establish a county seat on the Sabine River. It was incorporated in 1843.^[7] The Republic of Texas decided to choose the site of land donated by Peter Whetstone and Isaac Van Zandt after Whetstone had proven that the hilly location had a good water source.

The city quickly became a major city in the state because of its position as a gateway to Texas; several major stage coach lines and one of the first railroad lines into Texas ran through it. The founding of several colleges, including a number of seminaries, teaching colleges, and incipient universities, earned Marshall the nickname the Athens of Texas in reference to the ancient Greek city-state. The city's growing importance was confirmed when Marshall was linked by a telegraph line to New Orleans; it was the first city in Texas to have a telegraph service.^[8]

The Wyalucing plantation was the childhood home of Lucy Holcombe Pickens, the only woman whose image was used on Confederate currency. It housed the office of the Trans-Mississippi Postal Department.

By 1860, it was the fourth-largest city in Texas and the seat of the richest county. Developed as cotton plantations, the county had more slaves than any other in the state, making it a hotbed of anti-Union sentiment, but some residents of Marshall fought for the North. For example, brothers Lionel and Emmanuel Kahn, Jewish merchants in Marshall, fought on opposing sides in the conflict.^[9]

When Governor Sam Houston refused to take an oath of allegiance to the Confederacy, Marshall's Edward Clark was sworn in as governor. Pendleton Murrah, Texas's third Confederate governor, was from Marshall. The city became a major Confederate supply depot and manufactory of gunpowder for the Confederate Army,^[10] and hosting three conferences of Trans-Mississippi and Indian Territory leaders. The city also became the capital of Missouri's Confederate government-in-exile,^[8] earning it the nickname the City of Seven Flags, a nod to the flag of Missouri in addition to the other six flags that have flown over the city.

Marshall became the seat of Confederate civil authority and headquarters of the Trans-Mississippi Postal Department after the fall of Vicksburg. The city may have been the intended target of a failed Union advance that was rebuffed at Mansfield, Louisiana. Toward the end of the American Civil War, the Confederate government had $9.0 million in Treasury notes and $3.0 million in postage stamps shipped to Marshall.^[11] They may have intended Marshall as the destination of a government preparing to flee from advancing armies.

Reconstruction and the Railroad era (1865–1895)

Many African-Americans came to Marshall during Reconstruction. After Union troops departed, founding of the White Citizens Party produced an insurgent militia dedicated to white supremacy. A former slave displays a horn formerly used to call slaves on the outskirts of Marshall in 1939.

Marshall was occupied by Union forces on June 17, 1865.^[12] During Reconstruction, the city was home to an office of the Freedmen's Bureau^[13] and was the base for Union troops. In 1873 The Methodist Episcopal Church founded Wiley College to educate freedmen. African Americans came to the city seeking opportunities and protection until 1878. The Citizens Party, led by former Confederate General Walter P. Lane and his brother George, took control of the city and county governments and ran Unionists, Republicans and many African Americans out of town. The Lanes ultimately declared Marshall and Harrison County "redeemed" from Union and African-American control.^[14] Despite this the African-American community would continue to progress, with the establishment of Bishop College in 1881 and the certification of Wiley by the Freedman's Aid Society in 1882.

Marshall's "Railroad Era" began in the early 1870s. Harrison County citizens voted to offer $300,000 bond subsidy,^[10] and the City of Marshall offered to donate land north of the downtown to the Texas and Pacific Railway if the company would move to Marshall. T&P President Jay Gould accepted and located the T&P's workshops and general offices for Texas in Marshall. The city benefited immediately from a population explosion.^[8] By 1880 the city was one of the South's largest cotton markets. The city's new prosperity became apparent with the opening of J. Weisman and Co., the first department store in Texas, and with the installation of a single light bulb in the Texas and Pacific Depot, Marshall became the first city in Texas to have electricity. Prosperity brought out elements which led to some nationally known crimes being tried in the city, including the trials for the attempted murder of Maurice Barrymore. During this period of wealth, many of the city's now historic homes were constructed. The city's most prominent industry, pottery manufacturing, began with the establishment of Marshall Pottery in 1895.

Despite the prosperity of the railroad era, poverty continued to be a problem in the city among all races, but tensions between whites and African Americans continued to worsen after the Democratic-dominated legislature passed segregation laws and disfranchised the blacks. The rural areas of Harrison County saw greater interaction between white people and African Americans. There, whites and blacks being neighbors was commonplace. Even though the areas surrounding Marshall were somewhat integrated, racism was imposed in everyday life. Several planters divided up sizable tracts of land and gave them to their former slaves, which angered poor whites.

Early and mid- 20th century

The community has developed in and around Whetstone Square, shown here in 1939. Guests lodged in the Capitol Hotel, right, and the taller Hotel Marshall directly behind it. In the 1960s the Harrison County Courthouse, center, hosted the first sit-ins in Texas.

Natural gas arrived in the city from a field on Caddo Lake in 1909.^[15] Under the leadership of John L. Lancaster, the Texas and Pacific Railway experienced its height during the first half of the 20th century, Marshall's ceramics industry expanded to the point that the city began to be called the "Pottery Capital of the World." Marshall's industry received a boost with the discovery of what was then the largest oil field in the world at nearby Kilgore in 1930. Small landmarks of progress, such as the first student at Marshall High School to have a car, Lady Bird Johnson, excited the working class and poor.

During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, children of both races had been raised to accept the status quo of racial segregation. African-American Marshall resident George Dawson later wrote about his childhood experiences with segregation in his book Life Is So Good. He described how, despite African-American children's acceptance of segregation, in some instances its demands were too outrageous to follow. For example, Dawson described how he had refused the demand of one employer who expected him to eat with her dogs. Other racist tactics were more overt; between October 1903 and August 1917 at least twelve people were lynched.^{[16][17][18][19]} Not all instances of lynching were reported by authorities, so the number is likely an undercount.

In the early and mid-20th century, Marshall's traditionally black colleges were thriving intellectual and cultural centers. Two major future civil rights leaders, Martin Luther King Jr. and Jesse Jackson attended Bishop College, while James L. Farmer Jr. went to Wiley College. The writer Melvin B. Tolson, taught at Wiley and was part of the Harlem Renaissance in New York.^[20]

Elks Building, Marshall, Texas (postcard, 1909)

Inspired by the teachings of professors such as Melvin B. Tolson, students and former students of the colleges mobilized to challenge and dismantle Jim Crow in the 1950s and 1960s. Fred Lewis, as the secretary of the Harrison County NAACP, challenged the oldest White Citizens Party in Texas and the laws it enforced; ultimately abolishing Jim Crow in the county with the Perry v. Cyphers verdict. Heman Sweatt, a Wiley graduate, tried to enroll in the University of Texas at Austin Law school, but was denied entry because of his race. He sued and the United States Supreme Court ordered the desegregation of postgraduate studies in Texas in the Sweatt v. Painter (1950) decision. James L. Farmer Jr., another Wiley graduate, became an organizer of the Freedom Rides and a founder of the Congress of Racial Equality.

Late 20th century

Downtown Marshall to the north of the former Harrison County Courthouse

The effects of the Civil Rights Movement was felt into the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. In the 1960s, students organized the first sit-ins in Texas^[21] in the rotunda of the county courthouse on Whetstone Square in a move to end segregation of public schools; in 1970, all Marshall public schools were integrated. Also in that year, Carolyn Abney became the first woman to be elected to the city commission. In April 1975, years after passage of the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965, local businessman Sam Birmingham became the first African American to be elected to the city commission. In the 1980s, he was elected as the city's first African-American mayor. Birmingham retired in 1989 for health concerns and was succeeded by his wife, Jean Birmingham.

Marshall's railroad industry declined after most trains were converted to diesel fuel and the industry restructured. Expansion of airlines and the construction of the Interstate highway system after World War II also led to railway declines. The T&P Shops closed in the 1960s, and T&P passenger service ceased in 1970. The Texas oil bust of the 1980s devastated the local economy. The city's population declined by about 1,000 between 1980 and 1990.

During the mid-20th century, the city lost many of its landmarks to redevelopment or failure to maintain them. Some buildings were demolished because their owners disregarded their historic importance and preferred “modern” structures, others were demolished because their owners felt they could no longer afford to maintain them. By 1990, Marshall's opera house, the Missouri Capitol, the Moses Montefiore Synagogue, the original Viaduct, the Capitol Hotel, and the campus of Bishop College (including the Wyalucing plantation house) had been demolished. In the 1970s the city began to look at the preservation efforts of nearby Jefferson, and began to emphasize preservation throughout the remainder of the 20th century.

Old Harrison County Courthouse is illuminated for the "Wonderland of Lights".

Due to newly completed construction projects, the city was one of ten designated in 1976 as an All American City by the National Civic League. In 1978, then Taipei mayor, Lee Teng-Hui, and Marshall mayor, William Q. Burns, signed legislation recognizing Marshall as a sister city with the much larger Taipei. During this period Bill Moyers won an Emmy for his documentary, Marshall, Texas: Marshall, Texas, chronicling the history of race relations in the city. Despite these instance of national and international attention, the 1960s through 1980s were a period of social and economic decline for the city. It was surpassed in population and economic clout by its younger rival Longview.

The city began to concentrate on diversifying its economy in the 1980s and 1990s, with tourism emerging as an increasingly important area of the city’s economy. Two new festivals joined the longstanding Stagecoach Days, the Fire Ant Festival, and the Wonderland of Lights. The Fire Ant Festival gained national attention through television features on shows such as The Oprah Winfrey Show. The Wonderland of Lights became the most popular—growing to become one of the largest light festivals in the United States. By 2000, the Wonderland of Lights had become such a part of the cityscape that the lighted dome of the Old Courthouse had become the most recognizable symbol of the city. 2011 marks the 25th anniversary of the Wonderland of Lights festival. The City expected more than 200,000 visitors during the event's 40-day run, beginning with the official lighting ceremony on November 23, 2011.

21st century

In the 2000s (decade), the Sam B. Hall, Jr. U.S. Court House became one of the busiest federal courts.

The 2000s (decade) saw moderate economic growth and a renaissance of the downtown. By 2005, the Joe Weisman & Company building, the T&P Depot, the former Hotel Marshall (now known as "The Marshall"), and the former Harrison County Courthouse were either restored or under restoration. Restaurants, boutiques, and loft apartments infused the downtown economy and saved historic structures in decline. Many historic homes outside of downtown continue to deteriorate, and some structures in moderate condition were approved for demolition for replacement by prefabricated or tin structures. The square has become quite busy again, with few empty buildings. Lack of funding and manpower has slowed movement on demolition and salvage of historic homes.

The Sam B. Hall, Jr. Federal Courthouse became one of the busiest courthouses in the country, the venue for such cases as the Democratic challenge to the 2003 redistricting of Texas and the TiVo suit of EchoStar over DVR patent rights.

An unusual number of patent lawsuits are being filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas which includes Marshall, Tyler, and Texarkana. Marshall has a reputation for plaintiff-friendly juries for the 5% of patent lawsuits that reach trial, resulting in 78% plaintiff wins. The number of patent suits filed in 2002 was 32, and the number for 2006 has been estimated at 234. Only the United States District Court for the Central District of California in Los Angeles will have more patent suits filed than Marshall.^[22] The trend continued through 2011 in the Eastern District of Texas, which includes Marshall, with the number of patent lawsuits more than doubling from 2010.^[23] Marshall was profiled on This American Life for the patent suits controversy.^[24]

The city entered into a legal battle with local residents and environmentalists about the amount of water it could draw out of Caddo Lake—the source of the city’s water. This issue dominated city-county relation during the decade.

Music

On January 18, 2010, Dr. John Tennison, a San Antonio physician and musicologist, presented the findings of his research into the origins of Boogie Woogie music. He concludes that the music first developed in the Marshall area in the early 1870s in close connection with the T&P Railroad and the logging industry. On May 13, 2010, the Marshall City Commission unanimously passed an ordinance declaring Marshall to be "the Birthplace of Boogie Woogie."

Geography

Maplecroft is the centerpiece of the Starr Family Home State Historic Site.

Marshall is roughly 150 miles (240 km) east of Dallas, Texas and 40 miles (64 km) west of Shreveport, Louisiana. The intersection of US 80 and US 59 and the intersection of US 59 and Interstate 20 are located within the city limits of Marshall.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 29.6 square miles (77 km²), of that, 29.6 square miles (77 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.26 km²) of it (0.27%) is water.

Marshall is closer to the capitals of Arkansas (Little Rock, 190 miles (310 km)), Louisiana (Baton Rouge, 239 miles (385 km)), and Mississippi (Jackson, 243 miles (391 km)) than it is to the capital of Texas (Austin, 253 miles (407 km)).

The city lies within the Eastern Interconnection rather than the Texas Interconnection making it part of only 15% of the state to lie outside of that power grid.

The city is bisected along a north-south axis by East End Blvd. (US 59). The eastern half of the city is bisected along an east-west axis by US 80 which east of its intersection with US 59 is called Victory Drive and west of US 59 is named Grand Ave. The Harrison County Airport and Airport Baseball Park are located to the south of Victory Dr. off of Warren Dr.

To the west of US 59, south of Pinecrest Dr. are older suburbs; north of Pinecrest Dr. the oldest portion of the city stretches northward over seven hills. This portion of the city radiates out from downtown which is centered on the Old Harrison County Courthouse in Peter Whetstone Square. Immediately to the north of the square is the Ginocchio National Historic District where the city's Amtrak Terminal is located. This region of the city is bisected along an east-west by Grand Ave. (US 80). Spreading out from downtown is a belt of Antebellum and Victorian homes centered on Rusk and Houston Streets.

To the west of downtown are some of the oldest African-American neighborhoods in Texas, centered on Wiley College. To the north of Grand Ave. (US 80) are neighborhoods that were built largely by employees of the Texas and Pacific Railway. In addition to the Ginocchio National Historic District, this part of the city is home to East Texas Baptist University, and three historic cemeteries: Marshall Cemetery, Powder Mill Cemetery, and Greenwood, which is divided into Christian and Jewish sections.

Climate

Marshall has a humid subtropical climate, characterized by hot summers and fairly mild winters. On average, Marshall receives 51.2 inches (1,300 mm) of rain per year. The precipitation is relatively evenly spread throughout the year, with only the summer months of July and August receiving less than 3.5 inches (89 mm) on average.^[25]

In the spring months during the transition from winter to summer, severe weather is not uncommon, and tornadoes have hit the city in the past, including an F2 that struck the southern side of town in 2000, wiping out a Domino's Pizza on US Highway 59.

Summers in Marshall are hot and humid, with average temperatures higher than 85 degrees Fahrenheit (29 °C) from June through September. Temperatures above 100 °F (38 °C) are not uncommon, with a highest recorded temperature of 112 °F (44 °C) in August 1909.^[26]

In 2008, Hurricane Ike struck Marshall hard with winds over 60 miles per hour (100 km/h). 82% of the population in Marshall was without power for at least 24 hours.

Demographics

At the census^[2] of 2000, there were 23,935 people, 8,730 households, and 6,032 families residing in the city. The population density was 809.5 people per square mile (312.5/km²). There were 9,923 housing units at an average density of 335.6 per square mile (129.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 54.7% White, 38.6% African American, <0.1% Native American, 0.6% Asian, <0.1% Pacific Islander, 4.8% from other races, and 0.9% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8.6% of the population.

There were 8,730 households out of which 32.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.4% were married couples living together, 19.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.9% were non-families. 28.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.12.

In the city the population was spread out with 26.1% under the age of 18, 13.4% from 18 to 24, 24.6% from 25 to 44, 20.3% from 45 to 64, and 15.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 87.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $30,335, and the median income for a family was $37,438. Males had a median income of $30,146 versus $21,027 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,491. About 17.8% of families and 22.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 32.5% of those under age 18 and 15.1% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Local government

The City of Marshall has a Council-manager form of municipal government, with all governmental powers resting in a legislative body called a Commission. The Commission passes all city laws and ordinances, adopts budgets, determines city policy, and appoints city officials, including the City Manager. The city manager, rather than a mayor, serves as the executive of the city government and thus is in charge of enforcing city laws and administering the city's various departments.

The City Commission

City Hall in Marshall

The City Commission has seven members, each elected to serve a single-member district. Districts 1−4 divide the city into four districts, and the districts 5−7 divide the city into three districts that overlay Districts 1−4, so every location in the city falls in two districts, one from each set. Each Commissioner is elected to a two-year term. Districts 1−4 hold elections in odd-numbered years and districts 5−7 in even years; elections are held in the spring. After each election, the City Commission selects a commissioner to serve as Chairman of the Commission, generically called a Mayor, until after the next year's election. If no one files to run against a commissioner, as happened with District 1 in 2005, the commissioner is reinstated and an election for that district is not held that year. The City Commission meets twice a month on the second and fourth Thursdays, in addition to any special sessions that are called or regular meetings that are canceled. The Commission provides a public forum before each regular session, providing citizens the opportunity to address the commission for two minutes without forward notice, with notice additional time may be scheduled. The Commission meetings are broadcast on radio and on the local Government-access television (GATV), Public-access television cable TV station.

Commission members

Municipal services

Management of the city and coordination of city services are provided by:^[30]

State government

Marshall is represented in the Texas Senate by Republican Kevin Eltife, District 1, and in the Texas House of Representatives by Republican Chris Paddie, District 9.

The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) operates the Marshall District Parole Office in Marshall.^[31]

Federal government

At the Federal level, the two U.S. Senators from Texas are Republicans John Cornyn and Ted Cruz; Marshall is part of Texas' US Congressional 1st District, which is currently represented by Republican Louie Gohmert.

The United States Postal Service operates the Marshall Post Office.^[32]

The majority of the nation's patent litigation is handled in or around Marshall, Texas.^[33]

Economy

Capital One Bank in downtown Marshall

Marshall's economy is diversified and includes services such as Insurance claims processing at Health Care Service Corporation, also known as BlueCross BlueShield of Texas, education at several institutes of higher learning, manufacturing such as wood kitchen cabinets at Republic Industries and pottery at several manufacturers. Tourism is also an important industry with about one million tourists visiting the city each year.

Marshall has a local sales tax of 2.0%. The Marshall Economic Development Corporation or MEDCO lobbies companies to locate in Marshall and offers incentives to businesses that do. The Greater Marshall Chamber of Commerce represents the interests of local businesses to local, state, and national leaders.

Transportation

Major highways and interstates in Marshall

• U.S. Highway 80
• U.S. Highway 59 (Future Interstate 369)
• State Highway Loop 390
• Interstate 20

Marshall is served by two taxicab companies. The Harrison County Airport is located in Marshall.

Passenger rail

• Amtrak's daily Texas Eagle train leaves at 7:30 p.m. for St Louis and Chicago. The Texas Eagle leaves for Dallas, Austin, and San Antonio at 7:50 a.m., and continues to Los Angeles three days a week.

Education

Wiley College, an historically black institution

Education in the city in secondary and primary education is almost entirely conducted by the Marshall Independent School District, with more than six thousand students at twelve campuses.

Trinity Episcopal School serves students from Pre-School (age 3) thru 8th Grade at two campuses. St. Joseph Catholic School enrolls students from Pre-K through 4th Grade.

Nearly two thousand college students attend East Texas Baptist University, the historically black Wiley College, Texas State Technical College-Marshall, and Panola College-Marshall. ETBU is the largest of the four institutions.

Media

The city has one newspaper, The Marshall News Messenger, a subsidiary of the nearby Longview newspaper.

Four radio stations, KZEY (AM), KMHT (AM), KMHT (FM), and KBWC, serve the Longview/Marshall market.

Marshall has an ABC news office. The city is within the reception area of broadcasters based in Shreveport, Louisiana: KTBS (ABC), KSLA (CBS), KMSS (FOX), KTAL (NBC), KPXJ (The CW), KSHV-TV (My Network TV), and KLTS (Louisiana Public Broadcasting).

The local cable company, Fidelity Communications (formerly Cobridge Communications) provides public-access television channels that show local football games produced by KMHT radio, live and replays of meetings of the City and County commissions, and streams audio from KMHT.

Sites of interest

• The Ginocchio/Harrison County Historical Museum N. Washington St. at Ginocchio St
• Texas and Pacific Railway Depot, N. Washington St at Ginocchio St
• Hotel Marshall (Tallest building in Marshall) 210 W. Houston
• Starr Family Home State Historic Site 407 W. Travis St.
• Michelson Museum of Art 216 N. Bolivar Street
• Old Harrison County Courthouse Whetstone Square
• Joe Weisman & Co. (The first department store in Texas) 211 N. Washington St.

Notable people

Marshall Senior High School graduate Lady Bird Johnson, U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson's wife, helped convince Texas to plant wildflowers on state highways.

People from Marshall are called "Marshallites".

––––––––––––––––––––

†  Graduate, attended, or employed by Marshall High School

‡  Graduate, attended, or employed by Wiley College

See also

• List of museums in East Texas
• Patent troll

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Marshall, Texas.

• Official City Government Site
• Chamber of Commerce - marshalltexas.com
• Marshall News Messenger
• School District
• Texas H.R. No. 528 declaring Marshall Day at the State Capitol
• Historic photos of Marshall, hosted by the Portal to Texas History

Municipalities and communities of Harrison County, Texas, United States
County seat: Marshall
Cities	Hallsville Longview‡ Marshall Scottsville Uncertain Waskom
Unincorporated communities	Elysian Fields Gill Harleton Jonesville Karnack Latex Nesbitt Woodlawn
Footnotes	‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties

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